Reflections of Light
by Ritana
Summary: Melody hasn't had an easy life, her mother died when she was young, she was taken in by thieves and trained in team Aqua.


The Reflections of Light

Chapter one

            The harsh icy wind bit into seven-year old Melody's skin.  It's icy tongues trying to lick off her skin, sealing its thirst for warmth.  Melody hugged her mom and huddled herself into her moms long coat.  Her mom held young Melody as the group her and her mom were in proceeded up the snowy mountain slopes.  Melody's outfit was simple; she wore a blue top and shirt with a blue cap and coat.  Her hair was fully hidden except for a loose strand that had fallen, revealing its river-blue color against Melody's pale face.  Melody's mom wore the same outfit, but her hair was a soft pink and it was curly unlike her daughter's long blue hair.  Snow caked against the bottom of Melody's boot as her mom and her pushed on with the group.  

"Halt!" A voice echoed directly above Melody on a snowy ledge.  A man with a blue Bandana with a Giant A stated to the crowd of people below him.  Everyone remained motionless and said nothing as the man escorted and pointed people into ice filled caves.  A man taller than Melody's mom pointed them into a snowy bank and handed Melody and her mother a cup of soup.  Melody's mom led Melody into the cave where a steamy hot spring rested near the back.  Melody and her mom ignored it, though tempting it would lead to hypothermia and death.  Melody's mom took a few logs and a match from another man and built a warm fire.  The snow around them melted revealing the rock beneath the snow and ice.  Melody's mom spread a sleeping bag onto the ground for each of them and held a pot over the fire containing clumps of snow.  As it melted Melody's mouth watered and her mom poured the steamy soup into the water and set it on the newly exposed snow and stirred it with a spoon.  Melody and her mom had said nothing all day and Melody's mom was the first to speak,

"Soup's almost ready"

Melody nodded and took a crusty piece of bread from her backpack and divided it into half, giving the larger piece to her mother.  Her mother carefully poured the soup into two small bowls and gave one to Melody and kept the other for herself.  They dipped their bread into the soup and ate greedily.  They never ate breakfast or lunch, all they ate was dinner during long journeys, enabling longer trips and weeding out the weak, leaving only the strong and full of heart. 

 As Melody's mom cleaned up Melody released her Spheal and played with it before a man entered their cave and sat down next to the fire.  His face was grim and fresh with his evening dinner.  He gave Melody and big smile and she smiled back and returned to her Spheal and got up and sat with her mom holding her Spheal in her arms.

"I'm sure you know what this mission calls for Ms. Patra, we can only send in the very best, and your one of them, but I must warn you, this requires you fullness and ability must be tops.  You can get killed, you don't have to do it, but we'd really like you too, and your daughter must stay behind"

Melody's mom looked at her daughter before giving a slight nod and the man nodded,

"Fine then, this mission is to steal a batch of Pokemon from the Blackthorn Pokemon center, it is not only very dangerous, but it's dangerous, your wanted for arrest for that last smuggle"

Melody's mom was confused and gazed at her daughter before turning back to the man,

"I had nothing to do with it, and you know it"

The man laughed,

"Doesn't matter," With that he walked to the entrance of the cave and laughed a little more,

"We'll be seeing you at 7:00 tomorrow morning, its right down the mountain, we'll be leaving then, your daughter can stay with Helen, she decided against this, oh and about your paycheck, I'll be giving it to you tomorrow" The man laughed more and disappeared from view as a blizzard had begun raging outside.  Melody turned to her mother, who glumly kept staring out into the blizzard,

"Mom?"  Melody said shaking.

"Hm?" Melody's mom said turning to her daughter,

"Tell me, why do we do this, where's dad?"

Melody's mom let a soft tear fall down her cheek,

"I've told many times, and it hurts for me"  

Melody slummy looked away, "Mom, its just I want you to get better, we can live better than this, please I hate it here, the kids are nasty to me…we've switched Aqua groups and switched so much, but they're all the same, please I want to go to school and everything!"

Melody's mom picked up her daughter and held her close,

"I know sweetie, I want to quit too…. but I'll tell you what, tomorrow when I get the check I'll quit, we'll run far away to our old house or even far away to the rainbow!"

Melody still glumly looked down,

"You've said that before, I want to go home…even if I have to do it alone"

Melody's mom sat in deep thought for a moment before looking at Melody again,

"I'll tell you what, I'll think about it over night, I'll tell you in the morning, but right now…it's time to go to bed, with this fire you won't die right?"

Melody groaned and got out of her mother's lap and climbed into her sleeping bag and covered herself in piles of blankets.  Melody's mom kissed her goodnight and sat by the fire thinking a while before covering herself in blankets and going to sleep.

            "Mom?" Melody yelled shaking her mom's pile of blanket's, "they're calling for us!"

Melody's mom leaped up scattering the blankets everywhere.  Melody and her mom gathered them up and raced outside to the man from the night earlier who took their blankets and sleeping bags and gave them a stern look,

"You and your little brat need to learn whose boss around here!"

Melody's mom clutched her fist but made no movement as the man walked away.  Melody's mom cursed him under her breath and sat down and looked at Melody,

"I quit.  When I get ym check, we're leaving…. and…if anything should happen accept my check and get out of here, do you understand?"

"Yes ma'am, if they force you to stay…or don't give you a check, run away"

Melody nodded and her mom ran up to the rest of the group and followed them as they began down the mountain.  The blizzard had calmed down and Melody joined a group of children her age,

"Well well, if it isn't the brat and the brats daughter, no good kid with no papa"

A tear cinged Melody's eye as she threw a snowball at the group and they in turn slaughtered her with snowballs.  Her face became red and she ran to a nearby ledge and crawled into a cave that overlooked the nearby town that her mom and her group were heading into.  Melody released her Spheal and hugged it tightly,

"I wish the others cared…"

Spheal looked up at Melody with tears in her eyes and heard a roar of laughter above her.  A boy about ten snickered at her and stomped on the snow above her.  Melody's eyes were flooded with tears and she climbed up and stared the boy hard in the face,

"Ignorant child," She swung back her hand and punched him in the stomach and he collapsed onto the ground gasping for air.  Melody stared at him as he tried to regain his breath and said nothing,

"What, you, who do you think you are?!"

Melody said nothing and walked past him, Spheal trailing behind, sliding on the fresh coat of ice that had been laid late last night.  Melody and Spheal walked over to a nearby geyser and decided to practice their moves,

"Spheal use your ice beam!"

Spheal shot out an ice beam at the geyser freezing it and Melody hugged her bluppery Pokemon,

"Alright Spheal!"

Spheal clapped its hands and climbed out of Melody's hands and began sliding around on the ice.  Melody watched her Pokemon and laughed at its stillness.

            Melody looked at the sky and noticed it was getting late.  Another blizzard was coming in and a man handed her a check.  Melody gazed puzzled at the man who said nothing but took back the check and handed Melody a wad of bills before moving behind her to others and doing the same.  Melody looked towards the town and noticed an eerie orange glow coming from the town and Melody recalled her Spheal and began down the mountain's slopes as tiny ice crystals hit her face.  The town seemed to grow more and more distant the closer she got, but a smell of fire lingered in the air.  Rushing faster down the slopes she saw her mother covered in soot clinging to an ice-covered rock,

"Mother!"

"Melody…do you have the money?"

"Yes…why?"

"Run far away…" Melody's mom began hacking and collapsed onto the frozen ground.  Desperately Melody tried to pick up her mom, but she clung stiff and limp to the frozen ground,

"Mother don't die…I love you!"

Melody's mom said nothing and Melody countiued to try and revive her mother but nothing changed.  Melody didn't notice as a large dark shadow creped up behind her and grabbed her arms,

"Too much smoke, give it up kid"

Melody spun around to she a man with a blue bandana and expensive looking clothes, 

"Help me, she's all I got!"

"This was pointless, no Pokemon, a few dead people…" The man stopped as Melody desperately tugged on his arm sadly he said, "She's dead okay, if she's all you had, come with me, I'll find you a new home away from here"

Melody had begun crying and as the blizzard pulled in the tears turned into ice crystals, freezing her eyes shut.  The man wiped them away and lifted up Melody,

"Listen, you can only hurt yourself doing that kid, I'll get you a home, just trust me"

Melody rubbed her eyes and nodded as the man threw out a pok`eball revealing a large orange Pokemon, a dragonite.  

"What's going on?"

"Dragonite, take her to the foster home, she'll get treated better there than she will here, you know the place, this is no life for a child"

Melody looked at the man,

"My mom…she's dead isn't she?"

The man said nothing as the Dragonite darted off and Melody clung to it.  Melody dyed her tears and prayed softly to herself as the night grew colder and her thoughts of her mother drifted away.

            Melody awoke the next morning in a room covered with pink flowers.  She was lying in a bed with pink flowers also.  Getting up she checked each room as she headed down the hall to find each bare.  One room at the end of the hall had lights on and voices chatted away.  Melody entered and looked up to she two strange faces, a middle-aged man with an Aqua suit on and an elderly woman.  The woman was preoccupied with dishes and the man was busy reading the paper.  The Aqua A made Melody's stomach go sour as she began tiptoeing to the front door.  As she creaked it open the woman looked up and smiled at her.  Melody felt the cold brass and creaked it open more before the man set down the paper and stood up,

"Ready huh?  Let's go now, dad's got to go catch some Pokemon for his job, you can help me of course"

Melody shook her head and began out the door and the man slammed it shut and looked down at her with a menacing smile,

"Don't think so huh, well tough luck"

He grabbed Melody and the old woman turned off her water and the trio walked out to an old Chevy truck with most of the red paint peeling and hopped it.  The man started the engine and they began down the road,

"Listen Melody, your our daughter now, got you adopted as soon as you arrived, we're been waiting on a kid since my wife and son died in a fire last year"

Melody said nothing but pictured running away as soon as they stopped.  The drive was long mainly because of the empty beer cans lying on the dashboard.  When they stopped the woman grabbed Melody and made her chances of escape impossible.  The woman carried Melody to a playground filled with children about her age and handed her a dozen pok`eballs, 

"Catch each kids Pokemon, use your Pokemon and destroy them, catch their Pokemon and give them to us, just try it, maybe you'll like it, plus we'll pay you, $15 a Pokemon, how does that sound?"

Melody hesitated but looked at the man's evil smirk and nodded and walked up to a girl her age,

"Want to battle?"

"Sure thing…. what's your name?"

"Ri-" Melody looked at the man and woman who shook their head.  Melody understood, she had to keep her name a secret, "Nicky" Melody finished.

"I'm Marie, lets make this a one-one battle, ready?"

Melody unclipped Spheal's pok`eball and threw it out,

"Spheal"

"Dratini!"

Melody looked at her "family" as they leaped up for joy and Melody ordered her first attack,

"Spheal use your ice beam!"

"Dratini dodge it!"

The ice beam struck Dratini who howled in pain and collapsed onto the ground.  Marie smiled and held her injured Dratini,

"Your lucky my Dratini's still young, how long have you had yours?"

Melody stuttered and looked at her family who gave her a thumbs up and Melody picked up a pok`eball from the box she had been given Marie nodded,

"Want to battle more, I got another Pokemon"

Melody began shaking and threw her pok`eball at Dratini and it shook violently before settling down and Melody raced to pick it up before Marie had time to react and handed it to her family who grabbed Melody and hopped into the truck and the man started the engine as Marie started to scream and cry and looked at Melody as her mom came out and began chasing after the truck on foot.  Melody's family clapped happily as they raced off leaving Marie and her mom in the dust.  Melody looked at them until they disappeared and began crying.  The man slammed on his breaks,

"Shut up Brat, it gets better" He started the engine and began off again.  The woman smiled at Melody and took the pok`eball and handed Melody the money,

"You can stay at our house, rent for staying though it $60 a month, you've got a long way to go kid"

Melody stared at the pok`eball with Spheal in it and hugged it.

By the end of the month Melody's money collection had exceeded $260.  Melody's mom collected the sixty dollars and Melody stared at Spheal,

"They're right, the more I steal, the less hard it is…mom would be proud of me now"

Spheal looked at Melody in haste before heading over to his bed and falling asleep.  Melody packed away her money in a safe she bought and smiled,

"Easy money s my thing, just a few more years of this and it's all good"

Melody collapsed into her bed and stared at the ceiling,

"I wonder f they'll care enough to buy me anything for my birthday?"

Dreaming on that thought Melody drifted into a deep sleep and in her mind, she knew where she belonged and her destiny.  The next morning Melody's parents said nothing, no happy birthdays or good-mornings.  Melody gobbled down her pancake and grabbed her pack and Spheal's pok`eball and headed outside and looked for unsuspecting trainers she hadn't battled before and spotted one quickly.  It was a five year old with his eevee, an easy target.  Melody covered her hair and face with a cloak so she wouldn't worry about getting caught and said hi to the boy who showed her his eevee.  Melody took out an empty pok`eball and threw it out at the eevee and caught it easily and grabbed it.  The boy didn't cry and Melody looked at him,

"What's wrong with you?"

"Nothing, your just going to play with Eevee too, bring him back before dinner"

Melody said nothing as a tear trickled down her cheek and she bolted off into the woods.  Throughout the day she made a few captures and placed the pok`eballs on the table when she got home,

"Man, Woman, I'm home"

"How many you got?" Melody's father asked taking a sip of coffee,

"Five" Melody said proudly showing him the pok`eballs.  He nodded and tossed Melody her money,

"That other $15 is cause of your birthday k?"

Melody ignored him and stuffed it into her pocket and raced off to her room and stocked her money,

"This is my destiny, to strike it rich just stealing Pokemon, I'll do this from now until the end of time"

Melody counted her money and greedily stuffed it into her safe and locked it before stuffing it under her bed.  She released her Spheal who slid over to his bed.  Melody sat on the edge of her bed and watched Spheal,

"I'm eight years old today, not much different from my other birthday, only…" Melody discontinued her sentence and fell asleep in her bed before remembering what her mother had said about her father,

"Melody, ten years ago I met a man when I was twelve, we fell in love and got married when I was seventeen.  I had you a year after that, but then he just told me he hated me and left us, never to return.  Well I knew we were poor and everyone my family and everyone turned us away, so I joined Team Aqua to get free food and water, a place to sleep, friends and money.  That's why you don't have a daddy and we're here today"

Melody woke up and looked around, she had been crying as yellow crust had formed in the corners of her eyes.  She wiped it away and went back to sleep, knowing what tomorrow would bring.

            It would be three years before the police came.  Melody awoke that morning and sat down to a cold breakfast of eggs and ate slowly before her father came in and started reading the paper.  Melody chewed her food slowly and looked at the cock.  It was 6:00 o'clock in the morning and most children would be heading off to school, everyone except for her.  Melody heard a loud knock on the door and a booming voice followed,

"Open up, we've got a warrant to search this place, we have evidence to believe an eleven year-old here has been stealing Pokemon for three years, open up!"

Melody's father still looked at the paper but answered,

"Melody, come on, looking like we've got to move out, grab your stuff and meet me in the back"

Melody jumped out of her chair and raced to her room where she stuffed a very thick wad of bills into her pack and grabbed her sleeping Spheal and raced out to the backdoor.  Her father was already there and he shoved it open and looked around before leading Melody through a group of trees and down the block.  Melody could just imagine what was going on, the police had entered and Ma was persuading the cops no girl lived there, but her granddaughter came every other month.  Then by the time they left, Melody and her dad would be far away and her ma would have relocated herself away from any peeping eyes and cops.  Melody ran harder to keep up with her father as he led her to a black sports car.  He checked it over and noticed that no one had left their keys in it.  Taking a pin from his pocket he unlatched the door, sounding the car alarm and Melody hopped in on the passenger side while her father began hotwiring the car.  Melody looked behind them and noticed a group of cops heading in there direction.  Melody's father cursed under his breath and the car roared to life.  Shifting it into drive he slammed his foot onto the gas and sped away, hitting a cars bumper on the way out.  Melody's father laughed hoarsely as the cops were left dumbfounded.  Melody's father quickened his sped a he veered around cars on the road and out of the tiny community they lived in and onto the highway,

"Melody, you did pretty good, but now its time for the big money!"  Melody's father hollered seemingly drunk.

Melody remained quiet and hugged her Spheal.  Melody's father looked at her and grinned,

"What I'm talking about is the two of us rejoined a group of elite Aqua's at the airport today, your checks will get a lot higher than any stealing and you'll be able to pull off some pretty big operations over in Johto"

"How much money?" Melody said with growing curiosity.

"Oh, just enough, about $500 every two weeks, compared to about the $135 on average that you made previously.

That had gotten Melody's attention and she nodded as her father changed lanes on the highway and sped past a greyhound truck,

"So what do I do there?"

"First you'll need a little training, but basically just steal things that are worth the big money, you will no longer work alone either, you'll probably work with a group of kids about your age, they'll give you more info when we get there, but I won't be helping you, this is our exit"

Melody's father swerved into the next lane and turned up an exit ramp and followed the road until he came to the airport where he pulled in and parked next to a group of men, woman and children with blue clothing and giant A's on their caps.  Ricki and her father got out of the car and a group of men walked up to Melody's father and they began chatting away as Melody's father pointed Melody to a group of kids about her age.  She joined them and looked around at the kids.  One boy waved a high at her and she did nothing.  A woman walked up to Melody and asked her name,

"Melody"

"Okay, and what division are you in?"

"Whatever"

The woman shrugged and handed Melody a pile of clothes,

"Put these on and meet me by the plane, there's a pair of bathrooms over there, we'll be leaving shortly so don't take too long"

Melody nodded and walked over to the bathrooms and changed into her new outfit.  It was blue and white striped with a cap that portrayed a large bubble-blue A.  Melody walked back outside and joined the group and followed them to the plane.  Most of the kids her age ignored her as they took their seats in the plane and fastened their seatbelts.  A boy a little taller than Melody sat next to her,

"Hiya, the names Greg, and you are?"

"Melody"

"So did you get promoted from capturing…I mean stealing in your community?"

"Yeah" Melody said fastening her seatbelt.

"What Pokemon do you have?"

"None of your business"

"Ah a loner I see" The boy stood up and began walking away, "you'll go pretty far doing that, you can't always trust everyone, but here that's different, just keep that in mind newbie" The boy gave Melody a wink and sat a few seats behind her.  Melody let out her Spheal and hugged him as the plane began taking off and the intercom came on in front of the place,

"Attention all junior Aqua members, welcome to the junior division, our first mission is to head into Professor Elm's lab in New Bark town, Johto and steal as many Pokemon as possible.  Each of you shall be given a bag to store the pok`eballs in, when its full give it to an older representative.  If provoked battle, but don't fight alone, overwhelm others and it'll all go alright…we should be landing in about five hours, so I suggest that each of you rest up or watch a movie, today's movies are Sported Away, All Dogs Go To Heaven, Flubber and a series of short films, that is all until we land"

            Melody watched as a hologram movie filled the front of the plane.  Melody had never seen a movie in her life and stared at it puzzled as a scene with a girl driving in a car appeared.  Melody watched it with fascination along with the rest of the movies but far too quickly they all ended and the woman gave the commands again,

"Alright we will be landing in a few minutes, please make sure your seatbelts are fastened, when we land an reprehensive will show you to your location, New Bark town is a few yards from the airport and we will be walking there, after the mission you will report back to the plane quickly so we can escape back to the main headquarters, mess-ups aren't allowed and if you do, well the cops can help you there"

The plane lurched as it landed on the runway.  Melody looked outside as the place grounded to a halt.  When the place had complexly stopped Melody followed the other junior members outside and together they all filed into a line.  They exited the plane and Melody took in the fresh air that filled outside.  It smelled of pines, like something that had once been.  Melody and the other juniors walked on and soon the leader ushered a halt,

"Now juniors, perform your mission, the senior members will be taking care of everything else, now go!"

The junior members creped forward as the senior members handled shotguns nearby.  Melody was the first to enter the building and looked around, it was filled the advanced machines and Pok`eballs lined the walls.  Scientists were busy at each station examining pok`eballs and pokedexes.  A senior member motioned for the junior members who grabbed pok`eballs from the shelf and threw them into the bag.  Melody grabbed a handful and threw the into the bag quickly and noticed a brown-bearded man yawning and staring at her,

"Um?  What are you doing?"  He yawned seeming half-asleep.

Melody didn't answer and tossed the rest of the pok`eballs into the bag and ran outside along with the others who were fleeing.  The man screamed,

"Thieves, get them someone!"

No one took off after Melody and the others as they piled back into the plan and each took a bag of pok`eballs and held them as the plan took off.  Melody grinned as she hugged the bag full of pok`eballs,

"This is my life, and I'm going to live it right.

Chapter two

            Three years later…

"You go down the corridor Brain, Paney head to the right corridor, move" Yelled Melody, standing fourteen.  She was tall and her blue hair was done in two ponytails that cascaded down her back.  She wore a short blue skirt and a blue belly shirt.  A blue cap rested on her head with a giant "A" on it.  Melody gritted her teeth as she watched her two teammates disappear down the halls of the electric company in Lavaridge town,

"What is taking those fools so long?" Melody hissed stomping her foot, "I sent four others prior to them and they're still taking forever"

Melody felt someone grab her from behind and she struggled to break free.  She shot a look behind her to she two police officers standing over her,

"Ma'am, or should we say the blue breeze, I think you should come with us"

Melody shook her head violently, "Blue Breeze doesn't get caught!"  Melody felt a slam on her head and blacked out.  She heard roars and screams as her body was carried outside and her teammates were all rounded up.  Awaking she looked back to see most of her teammates had been captured, and were fleeing towards Mt. Chimmeny pass.  Melody grunted as she was tossed into the police car and the two high fived each other.  Gripping the bars separating them she screamed,

"What prize am I to you?"

"A good one!" They laughed together and pulled out of the electric company as flames rose higher and higher from it.  Melody slumped back; she knew where they would be taking her, to court.  They knew who she was and the numerous crimes she'd done, plus her foster parents would never pay bail, it was time to face the music.

"Order, Order!"  Judge Trinity yelled slamming her fist onto the table, "Mr. Baker, call your 'criminal' to the stand.

Mr. Baker smiled as Melody stood up and took a lazy seat in the questioning chair.

"Now ms. Melody, don't be feisty," Mr. Baker said calmly.

Melody stuck her tongue out an bit on it, "What?"

Mr. Baker snorted at her and looked over his files before answering her,

"Are Mr. Keith Slamma and Ms. Jackie Slamma your real parents?"

"No, wouldn't want them, don't care anyway, they adopted me" Melody said arrogantly.

"Alright, then did you steal a Dratini?"

"Which one?" Melody said slyly.

The Jury rose a gasp and Mr. Baker laughed to himself,

"The first one"

"Yeah, got $15 off the thing"

"Money, is that all that matters to you?  Are Pokemon a possession or a thing?"  Mr. Baker screamed.

""Order, Defendant doesn't have to answer, ask a better one Mr. Baker, before I have you thrown out of my courtroom again" Judge Trinity said.

Mr. Baker nodded, "No further questions at this time" Mr. Baker returned to his seat as a woman with thick blonde hair approached her,

"Sweetie, why did you steal?"

"Humph" Melody said sternly.  The woman smiled and turned to the judge,

"May I speak to her in private for a while?"

"It depends, for what?"

"I'm a consoler, and I think it would do this large case a good deal of good" the woman said firmly.

Judge Trinity nodded and motioned for a guard to watch the discussion as Melody and the woman exited the room and walked along the hall to a smaller room.  The woman led Melody in and each set on opposite ends.  The woman clicked on a tape recorder,

"Before this begins Melody" Melody looked at the woman, "You don't have to say anything"

Melody nodded and sighed,  "What do you want to know, and what good would it do?"

"Well for starters, get you a lesser sentence, probably only 16 years community service at the least with a maximum 25 years of jail."

"Sounds bad anyway" Melody said slowly.

The woman nodded, "So tell me, you might get off even better"

"Well, what do you want to know, you're the questioner, but I don't answer easily"

"For starters your attitude. It stinks, when's the last time you ever saw your foster mother and father?"

"Um, about 3 years, after they dropped me off to become a junior Aqua member"

The woman nodded sweetly, "I'm beginning to understand, do you have any Pokemon?"

"Yes, Spheal"

"May I see it?"

Melody threw out Spheal's pok`eball and the woman gave it a hug," It's cute"

Melody took back Spheal and gave him a hug,

"He's my best friend, he's so cute and blubbery," Melody looked at Spheal, "no offense Spheal"

"Are your foster parents your real parents?"

Melody glared at the woman, "Of course not, do I look anything like them?"

The woman nodded and wrote down a few things.  Melody tried to look but the woman hid it from view,

"Now Melody, tell me, how was your childhood?"

"None of your business" Melody said quickly, emphazing each word.

The woman nodded,  "I see…" The woman then pulled out a thick paper and folded her hands,

"My name is Yolda, I am going to ask you a few more questions, answer yes or no, its common sense really, also please answer truthfully, it'll make it better for you"

Melody crossed her legs and yawned, putting her chin on the table,

"Whatever"

Yolda sighed and flipped the first page,

"What is your real name?"

"Yes"

Yolda slapped her head,  "Sorry, I also meant to say what your name was, they're not all yes and no questions, now answer again please"

"Melody." Melody answered sounding bored.

"Is the sky blue?"

"Yeah, duh, just look out the window"

Yolda gave Melody a smile as she flipped to the next page,

"Alright, how old are you?"

"14, just turned it last month"

"Happy birthday Melody" Melody snorted at the comment and Yolda continued on, "Final question, what is the first Pokemon you stole?"

"A Dratini, I got $15 from the thing"

Yolda nodded and flipped the page,

"Let's see, next is an I.Q. test, provided to can read, and seeing your education status…I'll give you a 2nd grade I.Q. test"

Melody grabbed the paper that Yolda handed to her and a pencil and began reading, "This is all a waste of time" Melody said looking up.  Tolda nodded and walked out of the room and locked the door behind her.  She turned to the guard,

"When she's done, call me, I'll be in the Break room" The guard nodded and watched as Yolda disappeared down the hall.

            Yolda slummed into a beanbag couch in the break room and sighed, drinking her coffee.  Mr. Baker was in there and eyed her carefully,

"What's wrong with you?"

"Your not helping matters" she mumbled.

Mr. Baker smiled, "I know, just doing my job sweetheart" he leaned down and gave her a kiss on her forehead.

Yolda rolled her eyes, "I'm not making as much progress as I would like on Melody"

Mr. Baker scratched his head and sighed, "She's a tough on, and her foster parents didn't help, they're witnessing next, what do you bet they lie about everything?"

"Everything, seeing the way they looked yesterday justified that" Yolda threw her cup in a nearby trashcan and Mr. Baker got himself a cup of coffee from the machine and took a sip,

"What'd she say about her real mom and dad?"

"Not a word" sighed Yolda.

A creak echoed towards Yolda and Mr. Baker as the bulky guardsman entered,

"Melody has finished, here's her test, I got another postman on duty right now, so don't worry" The guardsman closed the door and Yolda inserted the papers into the machine one by one and waited for the score to ring up,

"Low I.Q's can justify a lot of things, and its mandatory"

Yolda gaped at the score on the machine and dropped her second cup of coffee onto the floor,

"Oh my Goodness, how did she do that?"

"Do what?" Mr. Baker said leaping over to where his wife stood.

"Well, because of this new technology it tests all areas of the brain, creativity and all, making it impossible to get it wrong from guessing and stuff, she got a genius score"

Mr. Baker dropped his cup to the floor.  Nothing was in it and it mad a shallow sound, "That can't be possible"

Yolda ran it through the machine again and the same results came.  Yolda picked up her cup and threw it in the trashcan,

"Judge is coming to over on this one"  Yolda walked out laughing as she headed back to the courtroom.

            Melody sat silently in the room.  It was dark and a bulky looking guard blocked her only exit out of this place,

"If only mom was here, this never would have happened, she would have told me what I did was wrong, or did I know it all along?"  Melody said softly

Melody's back ached and she rubbed it, "I guess I've been sitting too long"

The door creaked as a shadow entered the room, it was Yolda, "Melody…the judge would like to see you, after this trail the jury will decide its verdict, and things don't look to hot, luckily you're a minor" Yolda said bitterly. Melody stood up and exited into the hall.  Yolda led her back to the courtroom and she plopped down in the question box and glanced bitterly at Mr. Baker, who exchanged the same look.  The judge looked at Melody, "Now Mrs. Baker will ask you a few question, answer them truthfully and everything will go smoothly.

Melody nodded and glanced at Yolda, "If you're wondering, I'm married to Mr. Baker, but don't take it out on me" Yolda said putting her hands on her hips.  Melody did the same thing and Yolda sighed before asking the first question,

"Why do you steal, what's the point?"

"…Cause" Melody stuttered.

The judge slammed her mallet,  "You will answer the question Melody"

Mrs. Baker nervously looked at Melody, "Please Melody…"

Melody rolled her eyes,  "Money"

Ms. Baker stared at her blankly, "Okay…how much money do you think you have?"

"About 250,000 at least"

The jury gasped and murmured before Rapz continued,  "And it's my hard earned money, so stay away from it"

The judge bitterly glanced at Melody, "I don't know how much more I can take of this…this trail is over, and the jury will have their verdict ready soon hopefully…"

One man stood up quickly,  "We already do…"

The judge glanced softly at the jury, "Okay, very soon, what is your verdict?"

"Based on the info that you gave us, her parents records…and her past…we the jury find her guilty, her sentence is this" The man got out of the jury box and handed a slip of paper to the judge.  The judge read it over and nodded,

"With a few adjustments, your sentence is this, 2400 hours of community service, a fee of $200,000 to be paid in full, and you are to be placed for adoption, meeting finished, thank goodness"


End file.
